Is it Time for Another Steps Challenge?

As an organisation passionate about wellbeing, we are always keen to, ahem, step up for a good challenge! We know that we can increase the average office-based workers step count from 3,000 per day to 13,000 per day whilst participating in our ‘Shift’ challenge.

‘Shift’ is a challenge designed to increase levels of incidental activity throughout the day. We do this by implementing a scoreboard, encouraging team cohesion, taking participants on a virtual journey, offering up some fantastic prizes and ensuring that it is fun and engaging along the way.

But here at Synergy Health, we ask the question… is that enough? Are we leveraging as much as we can from the conventional, annual ‘run of the mill’ steps challenge? How do we ensure engagement over a broad spectrum of employees?

We believe that the answer lies in our '10 Healthy Habits’, which underpin all of our work and‘Moving Slowly Lots’ is just one of those healthy habits. Our comprehensive programs and suite of challenges help to create real long-term behaviour change and incorporate our habits, ‘Reducing Fake Food’, ‘Eating Real Food’, ‘Moving Quickly Once in a While’, ‘Getting Strong’, ‘Getting Adequate Sleep’, ‘Getting Adequate Sunlight’, introducing ‘Play’ into the day, ‘Managing your Thinking’ and learning to take ownership and ‘Engage Yourself’.

Think about this scenario. An employee who is not sleeping well will likely end up eating a lots of ‘fake food’ and consequently, consuming too much sugar. As a result they will have less energy during the day and are less likely to move slowly lots. Not only that, but they are more likely to develop negative habitual thinking patterns and become disengaged. Reduced energy and negative habitual thinking will further impact on their sleep quality. Focusing only on their physical steps is unlikely to produce the desired outcomes.

The daily activities that our ‘Shift’ challenge comprises are not just how many steps can you take, but also how to better understand the holistic nature of wellbeing and the relationship between each of the healthy habits and the impact on our overall wellbeing.

This not only keeps it interesting for participants, but also engages a broader audience and helps to ensure that participant rates do not drop over the course of the challenge.

We also offer a flexible start-date to our clients; this means that we can roll out the challenge when it best suits THEIR wellbeing calendar, and the demands of their organisation.

Tangible outcomes:

96% of shift participants would recommend others to participate in the challenge;

75% of participants are now more motivated to make positive changes to their lifestyle as a result of taking part in our ‘Shift’ challenge;

71% feel more confident in their ability to maintain positive health habits as a consequence of participating in our ‘Shift’ challenge.

What you can expect to achieve aside from the obvious health benefits:

A challenge that embraces teamwork;

A positive and uplifting initiative for staff;

More energised, enthusiastic and engaged staff;

Healthier, more productive, better educated staff members who understand the importance of a more holistic approach to overall wellbeing.